International media and economic policy: A comparative media analysis of 2002 U.S. steel tariffs [abstract]

Abstract only availableThis paper compares American and European media coverage of the U.S. Emergency Safeguard Measures for steel which were imposed from March 2002-Dec. 2003 and levied tariffs of up to 30% on some steel imports. Of European Union members, the United Kingdom and France were among the most heavily affected by the tariffs. Mainstream newspapers in those countries presented mainly negative information and opinions of the U.S. policy. There were no significant differences between British and French coverage of this issue. In comparison, U.S. sources were predominantly neutral. However, headlines and prominent articles in all countries often reflected negative attitudes, and the most opinionated language came from journalists themselves, not outside sources, giving quantitative support to theories of chronic press negativity

Corruption, democracy, and economic growth

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Identifying the task characteristics that predict children's construction task performance

Construction tasks form a major part of children’s play and can be linked to achievement in maths and science. However there is a lack of understanding of construction task ability and development. Therefore, there is little foundation for the applied use of construction tasks, such as in teaching or research, as there are no apparent methods for assessing difficulty. This empirical research identifies four construction task characteristics that impact on cognition and predict construction task difficulty in children aged 7-8 and 10-11 years and adults. The results also reveal a developmental trajectory in construction ability. The research provides a method to quantify, predict and control the complexity of construction tasks for future research and to inform applied use

On the shape of the spectrum of cosmic-rays accelerated inside superbubbles

Supernova remnants are believed to be a major source of cosmic-rays in the Galaxy. As their progenitors are commonly found clustered in OB associations, one has to consider the possibility of collective effects in the acceleration process. In this work we investigate the shape of the spectrum of protons accelerated inside the superbubbles blown around clusters of massive stars. To do so we embed semi-analytical models of particle acceleration and transport inside Monte-Carlo simulations of OB associations timelines. We consider regular acceleration at the shock front of supernova remnants, as well as stochastic re-acceleration and escape occurring between the shocks. We observe that particle spectra, although strongly intermittent, get a distinctive shape resulting from a competition between acceleration and escape: they are harder at the lowest energies and softer at the highest energies. The momentum at which this spectral break occurs depends on a single dimensionless parameter, which we evaluate for a selection of objects. The behaviour of a superbubble regarding acceleration depends on the magnetic turbulence: if B is low the superbubble is simply the host of a collection of individual supernovae shocks, but if B is high enough it acts as a global accelerator, producing distinctive spectra ? which has important implications on the high-energy emission from these objects.Comment: accepted for publication in A&A (final version

Stereoselective handling of perhexiline:Implications regarding accumulation within the human myocardium

Purpose: Perhexiline is a prophylactic anti-ischaemic agent with weak calcium antagonist effect which has been increasingly utilised in the management of refractory angina. The metabolic clearance of perhexiline is modulated by CYP2D6 metaboliser status and stereoselectivity. The current study sought to (1) determine whether the acute accumulation of perhexiline in the myocardium is stereoselective and (2) investigate the relationship between duration of short-term therapy and the potential stereoselective effects of perhexiline within myocardium. Method: Patients (n = 129) from the active arm of a randomised controlled trial of preoperative perhexiline in cardiac surgery were treated with oral perhexiline for a median of 9 days. Correlates of atrial and ventricular concentrations of enantiomers were sought via univariate followed by multivariate analyses. Results: Myocardial uptake of both (+) and (−) perhexiline was greater in ventricles than in atria, and there was more rapid clearance of (−) than (+) perhexiline. The main determinants of atrial uptake of both (+) and (−) perhexiline were the plasma concentrations [(+) perhexiline: β = −0.256, p = 0.015; (−) perhexiline: β = −0.347, p = 0.001] and patients’ age [(+) perhexiline: β = 0.300, p = 0.004; (−) perhexiline: β = 0.288, p = 0.005]. Atrial uptake of (+) enantiomer also varied directly with duration of therapy (β = 0.228, p = 0.025), while atrial uptake of (−) perhexiline varied inversely with simultaneous heart rate (β = −0.240, p = 0.015). Conclusion: (1) Uptake of both perhexiline enantiomers into atrium is greater with advanced age and displays evidence of both saturability and minor stereoselectivity. (2) Atrial uptake of (−) perhexiline may selectively modulate heart rate reduction

The Role of Individual Variables, Organizational Variables and Moral Intensity Dimensions in Libyan Management Accountants’ Ethical Decision Making

This study investigates the association of a broad set of variables with the ethical decision making of management accountants in Libya. Adopting a cross-sectional methodology, a questionnaire including four different ethical scenarios was used to gather data from 229 participants. For each scenario, ethical decision making was examined in terms of the recognition, judgment and intention stages of Rest’s model. A significant relationship was found between ethical recognition and ethical judgment and also between ethical judgment and ethical intention, but ethical recognition did not significantly predict ethical intention—thus providing support for Rest’s model. Organizational variables, age and educational level yielded few significant results. The lack of significance for codes of ethics might reflect their relative lack of development in Libya, in which case Libyan companies should pay attention to their content and how they are supported, especially in the light of the under-development of the accounting profession in Libya. Few significant results were also found for gender, but where they were found, males showed more ethical characteristics than females. This unusual result reinforces the dangers of gender stereotyping in business. Personal moral philosophy and moral intensity dimensions were generally found to be significant predictors of the three stages of ethical decision making studied. One implication of this is to give more attention to ethics in accounting education, making the connections between accounting practice and (in Libya) Islam. Overall, this study not only adds to the available empirical evidence on factors affecting ethical decision making, notably examining three stages of Rest’s model, but also offers rare insights into the ethical views of practising management accountants and provides a benchmark for future studies of ethical decision making in Muslim majority countries and other parts of the developing world

The effect of vent size and congestion in large-scale vented natural gas/air explosions

A typical building consists of a number of rooms; often with windows of different size and failure pressure and obstructions in the form of furniture and décor, separated by partition walls with interconnecting doorways. Consequently, the maximum pressure developed in a gas explosion would be dependent upon the individual characteristics of the building. In this research, a large-scale experimental programme has been undertaken at the DNV GL Spadeadam Test Site to determine the effects of vent size and congestion on vented gas explosions. Thirty-eight stoichiometric natural gas/air explosions were carried out in a 182 m3 explosion chamber of L/D = 2 and KA = 1, 2, 4 and 9. Congestion was varied by placing a number of 180 mm diameter polyethylene pipes within the explosion chamber, providing a volume congestion between 0 and 5% and cross-sectional area blockages ranging between 0 and 40%. The series of tests produced peak explosion overpressures of between 70 mbar and 3.7 bar with corresponding maximum flame speeds in the range 35 - 395 m/s at a distance of 7 m from the ignition point. The experiments demonstrated that it is possible to generate overpressures greater than 200 mbar with volume blockages of as little as 0.57%, if there is not sufficient outflow through the inadvertent venting process. The size and failure pressure of potential vent openings, and the degree of congestion within a building, are key factors in whether or not a building will sustain structural damage following a gas explosion. Given that the average volume blockage in a room in a UK inhabited building is in the order of 17%, it is clear that without the use of large windows of low failure pressure, buildings will continue to be susceptible to significant structural damage during an accidental gas explosion

Gelatin-Hyaluronic Acid Hydrogels with Tuned Stiffness to Counterbalance Cellular Forces and Promote Cell Differentiation

[EN] Cells interact mechanically with their environment, exerting mechanical forces that probe the extracellular matrix (ECM). The mechanical properties of the ECM determine cell behavior and control cell differentiation both in 2D and 3D environments. Gelatin (Gel) is a soft hydrogel into which cells can be embedded. This study shows significant 3D Gel shrinking due to the high traction cellular forces exerted by the cells on the matrix, which prevents cell differentiation. To modulate this process, Gel with hyaluronic acid (HA) has been combined in an injectable crosslinked hydrogel with controlled Gel-HA ratio. HA increases matrix stiffness. The addition of small amounts of HA leads to a significant reduction in hydrogel shrinking after cell encapsulation (C2C12 myoblasts). We show that hydrogel stiffness counterbalanced traction forces of cells and this was decisive in promoting cell differentiation and myotube formation of C2C12 encapsulated in the hybrid hydrogels.The authors are grateful for the financial support received from the Spanish Ministry through the MAT2013-46467-C4-1-R project (including the FEDER financial support), the BES-2011-046144, and the EEBB-I-14-08725 grants. CIBER-BBN is an initiative funded by the VI National R&D&I Plan 2008-2011, Iniciativa Ingenio 2010, Consolider Program. CIBER actions are financed by the Instituto de Salud Carlos III with assistance from the European Regional Development Fund. M.S.S. acknowledges ERC through HealInSynergy 306990.Poveda Reyes, S.; Moulisova, V.; Sanmartín Masiá, EDR.; Quintanilla-Sierra, L.; Salmerón Sánchez, M.; Gallego Ferrer, G. (2016). Gelatin-Hyaluronic Acid Hydrogels with Tuned Stiffness to Counterbalance Cellular Forces and Promote Cell Differentiation. Macromolecular Bioscience. 16(9):1311-1324. https://doi.org/10.1002/mabi.201500469S1311132416

PKS 1502+106: a new and distant gamma-ray blazar in outburst discovered by the Fermi Large Area Telescope

The Large Area Telescope (LAT) on board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope discovered a rapid (about 5 days duration), high-energy (E >100 MeV) gamma-ray outburst from a source identified with the blazar PKS 1502+106 (OR 103, S3 1502+10, z=1.839) starting on August 05, 2008 and followed by bright and variable flux over the next few months. Results on the gamma-ray localization and identification, as well as spectral and temporal behavior during the first months of the Fermi all-sky survey are reported here in conjunction with a multi-waveband characterization as a result of one of the first Fermi multi-frequency campaigns. The campaign included a Swift ToO (followed up by 16-day observations on August 07-22, MJD 54685-54700), VLBA (within the MOJAVE program), Owens Valley (OVRO) 40m, Effelsberg-100m, Metsahovi-14m, RATAN-600 and Kanata-Hiroshima radio/optical observations. Results from the analysis of archival observations by INTEGRAL, XMM-Newton and Spitzer space telescopes are reported for a more complete picture of this new gamma-ray blazar.Comment: 17 pages, 11 figures, accepted for The Astrophysical Journa

Serotonin transporter gene (SLC6A4) polymorphism and susceptibility to a home-visiting maternal-infant attachment intervention delivered by community health workers in South Africa: reanalysis of a randomized controlled trial

Background Clear recognition of the damaging effects of poverty on early childhood development has fueled an interest in interventions aimed at mitigating these harmful consequences. Psychosocial interventions aimed at alleviating the negative impacts of poverty on children are frequently shown to be of benefit, but effect sizes are typically small to moderate. However, averaging outcomes over an entire sample, as is typically done, could underestimate efficacy because weaker effects on less susceptible individuals would dilute estimation of effects on those more disposed to respond. This study investigates whether a genetic polymorphism of the serotonin transporter gene moderates susceptibility to a psychosocial intervention. Methods and findings We reanalyzed data from a randomized controlled trial of a home-visiting program delivered by community health workers in a black, isiXhosa-speaking population in Khayelitsha, South Africa. The intervention, designed to enhance maternal-infant attachment, began in the third trimester and continued until 6 mo postpartum. Implemented between April 1999 and February 2003, the intervention comprised 16 home visits delivered to 220 mother–infant dyads by specially trained community health workers. A control group of 229 mother–infant dyads did not receive the intervention. Security of maternal-infant attachment was the main outcome measured at infant age 18 mo. Compared to controls, infants in the intervention group were significantly more likely to be securely attached to their primary caregiver (odds ratio [OR] = 1.7, p = 0.029, 95% CI [1.06, 2.76], d = 0.29). After the trial, 162 intervention and 172 control group children were reenrolled in a follow-up study at 13 y of age (December 2012–June 2014). At this time, DNA collected from 279 children (134 intervention and 145 control) was genotyped for a common serotonin transporter polymorphism. There were both genetic data and attachment security data for 220 children (110 intervention and 110 control), of whom 40% (44 intervention and 45 control) carried at least one short allele of the serotonin transporter gene. For these 220 individuals, carrying at least one short allele of the serotonin transporter gene was associated with a 26% higher rate of attachment security relative to controls (OR = 3.86, p = 0.008, 95% CI [1.42, 10.51], d = 0.75), whereas there was a negligible (1%) difference in security between intervention and control group individuals carrying only the long allele (OR = 0.95, p = 0.89, 95% CI [0.45, 2.01], d = 0.03). Expressed in terms of absolute risk, for those with the short allele, the probability of secure attachment being observed in the intervention group was 84% (95% CI [73%, 95%]), compared to 58% (95% CI [43%, 72%]) in the control group. For those with two copies of the long allele, 70% (95% CI [59%, 81%]) were secure in the intervention group, compared to 71% (95% CI [60%, 82%]) of infants in the control group. Controlling for sex, maternal genotype, and indices of socioeconomic adversity (housing, employment, education, electricity, water) did not change these results. A limitation of this study is that we were only able to reenroll 49% of the original sample randomized to the intervention and control conditions. Attribution of the primary outcome to causal effects of intervention in the present subsample should therefore be treated with caution. Conclusions When infant genotype for serotonin transporter polymorphism was taken into account, the effect size of a maternal-infant attachment intervention targeting impoverished pregnant women increased more than 2.5-fold when only short allele carriers were considered (from d = 0.29 for all individuals irrespective of genotype to d = 0.75) and decreased 10-fold when only those carrying two copies of the long allele were considered (from d = 0.29 for all individuals to d = 0.03). Genetic differential susceptibility means that averaging across all participants is a misleading index of efficacy. The study raises questions about how policy-makers deal with the challenge of balancing equity (equal treatment for all) and efficacy (treating only those whose genes render them likely to benefit) when implementing psychosocial interventions